Effect of Personal Historical Factors on Attitudes Toward Recreational and/or Therapeutic Usage of Abuse-Prone and/or Illicit Substances

Start Date

April 2020

End Date

April 2020

Major Field of Study

Psychology

Student Type

Adult Degree Completion

Faculty Mentor(s)

William Phillips, PhD

Presentation Format

Poster Presentation

Abstract/Description

As a new generation of experimental investigation into currently illicit substances takes its first steps into the scientific zeitgeist, and as scheduling for certain illicit substances is revealed to be increasingly politically motivated, psychopharmacology stands poised at the precipice of a new experimental renaissance. Research into hallucinogens indicates untapped potential therapeutic applications for psychedelics, some explicitly lamenting that progress has been stymied by misguided regulation. However, as evidenced by current efforts to decriminalize cannabis, legislative change can be arduous, even when backed by overwhelming popular opinion. As such, expecting meaningful progress in substance regulation without that popular support is naively idealistic. The present study aims to measure attitudes toward recreational and/or therapeutic use of various substance categories, and examine possible relationships between those attitudes and: (1) usage frequency of various substance categories, (2) close-relation incidences of psychological conditions, and (3) demographic factors. Participants complete a questionnaire containing the Drug Attitude Inventory--10-Item Version (DAI-10), a version of the DAI-10 adapted for recreational substances, simple Likert-scale measures of attitude based on substance category and usage type, and questions referencing the aforementioned historical and demographic factors. The following is hypothesized: (1) higher-frequency substance users, regardless of substance category, will have more positive attitudes toward substance use than lower-frequency users; (2) individuals with experience involving non-substance-abuse-related psychological conditions will have more positive attitudes toward substance use than individuals without that experience; and (3) individuals with experience involving substance-abuse-related psychological conditions will have less positive attitudes toward substance use than individuals without that experience.

Comments

This presentation was accepted for the Scholarly and Creative Works Conference at Dominican University of California. The Conference was canceled due to the Covid-19 Pandemic

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Effect of Personal Historical Factors on Attitudes Toward Recreational and/or Therapeutic Usage of Abuse-Prone and/or Illicit Substances

As a new generation of experimental investigation into currently illicit substances takes its first steps into the scientific zeitgeist, and as scheduling for certain illicit substances is revealed to be increasingly politically motivated, psychopharmacology stands poised at the precipice of a new experimental renaissance. Research into hallucinogens indicates untapped potential therapeutic applications for psychedelics, some explicitly lamenting that progress has been stymied by misguided regulation. However, as evidenced by current efforts to decriminalize cannabis, legislative change can be arduous, even when backed by overwhelming popular opinion. As such, expecting meaningful progress in substance regulation without that popular support is naively idealistic. The present study aims to measure attitudes toward recreational and/or therapeutic use of various substance categories, and examine possible relationships between those attitudes and: (1) usage frequency of various substance categories, (2) close-relation incidences of psychological conditions, and (3) demographic factors. Participants complete a questionnaire containing the Drug Attitude Inventory--10-Item Version (DAI-10), a version of the DAI-10 adapted for recreational substances, simple Likert-scale measures of attitude based on substance category and usage type, and questions referencing the aforementioned historical and demographic factors. The following is hypothesized: (1) higher-frequency substance users, regardless of substance category, will have more positive attitudes toward substance use than lower-frequency users; (2) individuals with experience involving non-substance-abuse-related psychological conditions will have more positive attitudes toward substance use than individuals without that experience; and (3) individuals with experience involving substance-abuse-related psychological conditions will have less positive attitudes toward substance use than individuals without that experience.